Method and apparatus for hydrocarbon conversion



Jan. 19, 1954 E, v, BERGSTROM 2,666,731

METHOD ANDHAPPARATUS FOR HYDROCARBON CONVERSION Fi1ed Feb. 12, 1949 2 sheets-sheet 1 4 .55m/mm1? 15 "ND M 155 .SUPPLY HUP/m L;

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THREE |L L/FTFEED rfi/VK v m 115 BY Jan. 19, 1954 E. v. BERGsTRoM METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR HYDROCARBON CONVERSION Filed Feb. 12, 1949 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Jan. 1.9 1954 UNITED STATES T yFFCE METHOD APPARATUS F O{R'HYDRO CARBGN CONVERSION corporation of- New York Applicationireruary 1.2, 1949; sesamo. 76,017

1-5?-Claini's.

l This invention pertains to processes for'A cone version oi uidhydrocarbons in the presence' of a vgranular contact material which mayv or' may not loe-catalytic in nature. Typical of the processes to which this invention pertains .are the catalytic cracking conversion, isomerization, hy',- drogenation, reforming, dehydrogenation aromatization, hydroiorming, treating and desulfurization of petroleum fractions. Also typical are the coking, viscosity reducing of etroleunfi residuums and high temperature pyrolytic `con version processes such as the ccnversionoi propane and ethane to ethylene or of methane 'to acetylene. Inthese latter processes the granular contact material serves merely as a heatccarrying material. v

An important commercial unit for continuously conducting reactions oi this type is one wherein the granular contact material ispassed` cyclicallythrough a hydrocarbon conversion anda contact material reconditioning zone in which: -it ows ,d'ownwardlgg7 as a substantially compact column. The contactmaterial employed insuch a process may be a catalyst in the form oi natural and treated clays, bauxites, inert carriers impregnated with certain catalyst activeY metallic oxides or synthetic associationsV of silica-alun mina, magnesia or of combina-tionsl thereof-'to which may be added small amounts of metallic oxides for specific purposes; When the contact material is employed' for heat carrying' purposes only it may take the form yof metal balls, capsules containing fusible alloys, pebbles, carborundum, mullite, zirconium oxide, fused aluminaand the like. For coking processes the' solid material ma;T consist of a low activity clay catalyst, petroleum coke or porous inert material such as puniice. The contact material Vmay be in the form oi pellets, spheres, tablets or irregular shaped particles and it should be understood that ythe term granular is employed broadly herein as coveringany of the above; Thev contact material granules may range in sizey from about one-half inch' to 8) mesh Tyler, and preierably'should be oi the order oi" i to 29 mesh size. This invention is concerned with an improved system for conducting reactions of the type discussed above in the presence of a'cyclically moving granular contact material and particularly with the contact material circulation part of such system.

Ieretoiore, it has been customary in com'- mercial installations to position the reaction and regenerationr vessels side by side' and tov circulate contact material between the vessels in` bucket elevators. Such elevators are unsatisfactory for eidrern'e'ly high temperature operations due to mechanical a'ilureand also impose undesirable practical limitations on the maximum rate of Contact material circulation. It has heen pro posed in the prior art towithdraw contact material from one of the contacting vessels through a throttled outlet pipe from which it passes into a high pressure, high velocity jet oi liit gas by which is suspended and lifted to the other contacting Zone. Such systems have not been ein`- ployed in commercial4 cracking units using granular contact material Vbecause of several serious difficulties rising from their use in such processes. The lift gas in such proposed systems is provided by a compressor and due to the .vert7 substantialV pressure drop across the lift pipe, the power requirements for such lift systems is very high. Also, sincev there is a substantial pressure at the lower end of the lift stream, a serious problem arises in attempting to introe duce-.thecontact material into the lift gas stream, particularly when the contacting zone from Which it passes to the lift stream is operating at a low pressure. Another -very serious disadvantage of such; transfer systems is that the high velocity gas jetv which is customarily introduced into the lower end of Vthe gas liit pipe causes seriousattrition of the contact material to rines and erosion of the apparatusl Also, while under certain conditions of -gasV and contact material linear flow velocity, serious attritionl of the com tact material in-theliit-pipe itself may oe avoided. Such operationA cannot be assured in gas lift methods known` heretofore because oi the fact that they usually depend upony a change in total gas ilovv Vrates to effect changes in the amount of contact material-being transferred per unit oi time; This-means that a required change in contact material circulation rate demand a change to-gas velocities,I inthe rgas liit stream which are not desirable from a standpoint oi contact material' attrition. Sonie prior art sas lifts' employing high velocity ejectors depended not onlyv on change in ejection gas velocity to regulate solid transfer rates but also on a change in the'spacialrelationships of the gas and solid material inlets with respect to each other and with respect tothe lower end of the' gas liit pipes. Since a large par-t .of the attrition losses may occur in the region of the high velocity jet inlet point, asmall chang-ei in' spacial relationships vin thisl region in gas lifts of the latter type have a very detrimental eiie'ct on contact ma# teria-l'attri-tionrates;

It is a major object of this invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for conducting hydrocarbon conversions in the presence of moving granular contact material.

A specific object is the provision in such a process of a new and improved method and apparatus for accomplishing the Contact material circulation and for controlling its rate.

Another object is the provision of an improved method and apparatus for introducing the contact material into a gas lift stream which will make practically possible the circulation of granular contact material in continuous catalytic cracking system by means of pneumatic transfer.

rlhese and other objects of this invention will become apparent in the following discussion.

According to one form of this invention, contact material is passed downwardly through two contacting zones, arranged one above the other, one of said zones being the hydrocarbon conversion zone and the other zone being the contact material reconditioning zone. The contact material is passed downwardly by gravity flow from the lower contacting zone as a compact stream delivering onto a compact bed of contact material in a lift feed zone. A lift pipe extends upwardly from within said bed to a separation zone which is located above the upper contacting zone. The downwardly facing lower end of the lift pipe is open across at least part of its cross sectional area to said bed. A iirst stream of lift gas is passed upwardly into the lower end of the lift pipe without causing it to pass through any substantial depth of contact material bed. A feeder stream of lift gas is caused to pass through a substantial portion of the bed and then into the lower end of the lift pipe so as to push or induce the contact material from the bed to flow into the first upwardly flowing lift gas stream. The rate of contact material entry into the lift pipe is controlled by regulation of the amount of feeder gas flow. The lift gas stream may enter the lift pipe under a pressure suitable for effecting the desired contact material transfer but in preferred forms of the invention the lift gas and contact material which has entered the lower end of the lift pipe is sucked upwardly by means of vacuum maintained in the receiving or separation zone. The contact material is separated from the lift gas in the separation zone and passes downwardly Ithrough an unobstructed gravity feed leg to the conversion zone. When the contacting vessels are arranged one above the other the rate of contact material downward travel from separation zone all the way down to the lift feed zone is controlled by control of the rate of contact material entry from under the bed in the lift feed zone into the gas lift stream. If the contact material vessels are positioned side by side, two such pneumatic transfer systems are provided.

The invention may be most readily understood by reference to the attached drawings of which Figure 1 is an elevational view, partially in section, showing a preferred arrangement of the entire cyclic conversion system according to this invention;

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an elevational View, partially in section showing a modication of a portion of the conversion vessel in Figure 1;

Figure 4 is an elevational view, partially in section showing details of the lift feed tank shown in Figure 1;

Figure 5 is an elevational view showing a modication of part of the arrangement shown in Figure 1; and

Figure 6 is a similar View of a modified form of the lift feed tank. All of these drawings are highly diagrammatic in form.

Turning now to Figure 1, we find a supply hopper or separator I0, a convertor II, a reconditioner I2 and a lift feed tank I3 arranged in vertical series. The separator may be of any desired conventional design, the one shown being of the Settling chamber type in which gas and contact material enter upwardly from the flared open end of the lift conduit M located intermediate the top and bottom of chamber Iii. A cylindrical bafe I5 is suspended from the top of chamber I and terminates near the level of gas discharge from the lift conduit. A gas outlet conduit I6 connects through the side of chamber I0 near its top and communicates the upper section of chamber Il `with a barometric condenser I30. Condensing water is supplied to condenser |39 via conduit I3I and non-condensed gas is withdrawn via conduit E32 to an ejector |33. A barometric leg I3li extends downwardly from the condenser to a suitable well not shown. The barometric condenser may be of conventional construction. Two vertical feed leg pipes il and I8 extend down from the bottom of chamber it to terminate within the upper section of seal hoppers I@ and 20. The feed leg pipes are continued as pipes 2l and 22 down from the bottom of the seal hoppers into the upper section of the convertor II. Seal gas inlets 23 and 2d connect into the tops of seal hoppers I9 and 2e respectively. The pipes 2l and 22 are closed on their lower ends except for centrally positioned orifices 25 which are of such size as will permit the passage therethrough of only a portion of the total contact materials flow circulation. A number of branch pipes 2 and 23 extend down from the pipes 2| and 22 to a plurality of points uniformly distributed across the cross-section of vessel II. While only two gravity feed legs are shown it will be understood that any desired number may be employed, for example, four pipes, one in each quadrant may be provided for better contact material distribution.

The convertor II shown is circular in horizontal cross-section but may be of any desired shape. A vertical conduit 30 extends centrally through the convertor II and its open ends are welded to the top and bottom of the convertor so as to provide a central vertical shaft which extends through the convertor. Within the upper section of the convertor distributing cones are supported by suitable means (not shown) centrally below the pipes 2l and 22 respectively. Spray nozzles 34 and 35 are positioned below the cones 32 and 33 and are mounted on liquid supply pip-es 3@ and 3l respectively. The spray nozzles are located above the lower ends of pipes 21 and 28 so that the liquid oil charge is sprayed into the shower of contact material falling from the cones 32 and 33 above the surface of the compact bed of contact material fie. A conduit 4I connects into the upper section of vessel II for vapor charge.

It will be understood that otherl suitable arrangements may be provided for Contact material and hydrocarbon introduction into the convertor. A modified arrangement is shown in Figure 3 in which like elements bear the same numerals. In the arrangement shown in Figure 3 the pipes 2| and 22 are entirely open cn their lower ends, only pipe 22 being shown. Pipe 22 delivers the .asada-s1 Such an arrangement is. described in .detail in .United .States Patent 2,438,261, .issued March 23,

Across the lowersection of vessel H. there. are provided two vertically spaced aparthorizontal partitions d3 and 44. A plurality. of riser .pipes d2 (not being shown) .extend .up through' the upper partition. d3. The `pipes 4:2 are. uniformly distributed around the partition and :areclosed onlyon their upper ends. On-each pipe-li2 there are, attached verticallyspaced, inverted, conical shapedcollecting vcups i 45. Thelundersides of4 the cups 45 communicatev with the interior of: pipes d2 through oriiices A6. vDepending `from Vthe lower partition lill are two annular shaped funnelsfi'l and 48 which havedownspouts $9 and 5&3 respectively depending from their bottoms. A plan View of thesefunnels maybe seen in Figure 2. A plurality of pipes 52 depend from partition 43 and terminate at a common level just above the annular tunnels. The pipes 52 are uniformly distributed across the horizontal cross-sectional area of partition i3 and half of these pipes deliver contact material into funnelJl'i rwhile the other half deliver into funnel fit. This arrangement insures uniform iiow of contact material through all the pipes 52 since the flow is as a compact stream throttled at a still lower level in the system as will be described hereinafter. The downspouts wand 5t deliver the contact materialy into the upper end of the reconditioner t2. If desired, four sets of funnels and downspouts may be provided instead of two in which case each set is preferably oifset 3i]y degrees from any other set. Purge gas inlet manifold boxes 58 andv 5t are provided around the downspouts 9 and' and louvers E@ are provided in thedownspouts to permit ingress of purge gas. -Supply pipes Si and E2 connect into thelmanifold vboxes 53 and 5e respectively. Avapor outletconduit 6e connects into the convertor at a level Vbetween partitions #i3 and dii. Other catalyst withdrawal and purging arrangements may be substituted for the one described. For example, an alternative arrangement whichv may be employed is described in United States "Patent 2,434,202, issued formly distributed pipes Tl depend lfrom partition 'i5 for contact material flow from the upper chamber and `to provide a gas space 'i8 above the column i9 in the reconditioner. A ring type gas inlet header 80 supplied from conduit 8l is provided in the gas space 18. Tubes y32 ldepend from the header rSii and terminate in flared lower ends at-an intermediate levelin the vessel -I-2". VA. partition `81.5 extends across the lower vsection of in :the converter; extend `upwardly from the space underv partitionxfto a level thereabove. Iii- .vertedcollector 'cupsiel are provided on pipes 85.- Agasoutlet, conduit '88 communicates the space .under partition 85 wth a stack .89. Anothergas outletf conduit .|50 connects between the space `under partitionv id-and stack 89. Annular. shaped funnelsflxand 9i with dcwnspouts 92 and. $3 .respectivelyidepend from the bottom ofl vessel i2., and are supplied with solid material from pipes 9s which depend from partitioned The `arrangement is similar kto the contactmaterial :withdrawal arrangement provided in the con- Verteri l as-described above. Heat transfer tubes @dare yprovided-at one levelalong the lower por.- vtion. of. thereconditioner. A suitable heatY ex# change fluid is supplied. to these vtubes from `a manifold box on .one side of the vesseland with.- drawninto asecond manifold box on the opposite side.` of the vessel; The inlet manifold box. is indicatedat $5 and is supplied in turn from inlet conduit 91. Reconditioning gas, for example air, passes from a blower 98 through a suitable line heater 99 and :then via conduit to the ring type manifold-3%. If desired, the line heater may be by-passed insome operations. It should be understood that the rcconditioner described above is only vone of a number of possible designs which are particularly adapted for use in operations .wherein a catalyst bearing carbonaceous deposits requires regeneration byburning of .the deposits. In operations .wherethe purpose of the reconditioner is merely to exchange heat to or from the Contact material, its constructionv may vary considerably. from that shown in .xfigurel.

The downspouts 92 and 93 deliver contact-material into the upper section of the lift feed tankvi3-which is ventedeither to the atmosphere or to a low 4pressure zone via pipe lili,V f desired, depressuring chambers may be provided along' the pipes A92 and t3 above the feed tank instead of venting the feed tank. Such an arrangement lis shown in Figure 5 in which the pipes 32- andvSS Aterminate within vdepressui'ing chambers 2i@ and 2H. Gas is withdrawn from the tops of these chambers and the Contact inaterialflows down through pipes YQ2 and 93 into the closed lift feed tank i3'. Seal legs of contact material formed in pipes 92 and 93 permit the supply of the feeder stream of lift gas into the top oftank i3 via conduit 2 i 5.

The feed tank may be best understood by considering Figure Li along with Figure l. Avertical lift conduit extends upwardly from a location within the tank is, below the bed surface [D2V therein through the shafts 93 and 30 inthe reconditioner and-convertor and up into the separ- 4ratorll) wherein it termintes at an intermediate level between its ends. The `shafts H03 and 3Q are of substantially greater diameter than the Ylift -pipe `it so as to avoid thermal expansion stresses and alsoso as to permit the substitution off-a largeriift pipe should higher circulation Arates be required at a future time. The lower end of vpipe le is Vflared and the conical roof' liof a cylindrical inlet header iextends Y centrally up into the flared end of pipe I i so `as to leave -an annular passage lfii for contact material entry. The header It is connected` to the bottom of tank i3 and gas is supplied thereinto through pipe it?. The roof member EN has numerousperforations 98 therein to permit gais int'opipveI t4; 4If desired, the roof4 mem.- b'ers maybeformed of screens. In the modifica'- tion shown in' Figure 4, the perforations in roof vmember |01?, are all -above the flared lower end of the lift pipe so that the gas entering from pipe it? enters the lift pipe without having to pass through any portion of the bed in the feed tank. Ring shaped angle members |09, and i i l are provided at three levels around the inner periphery of tank |3. Member |00 serves to baiile the contact material flow while members H0 and EH serve as gas distributors supplied from conduits H2 and H3 respectively. The gas distributor members should be at levels near that of the lower end of pipe I4. Flow control valves H4 and H5 are provided on conduits ||2 and H3 respectively and these conduits are connected through conduit ||6 to one side of a three-way valve Hl'. Conduit |01 communicates header with another side of valve and gas is supplied to the third side of valve through conduit H8. A diaphragm operated flow control valve I9 is provided on conduit I8 upstream from valve H7. Valve ||9 is actuated by flow rate controller 2u in response to changes in gas ow rate as measured by orice |2|.

In operation, contact material passes downwardly as a substantially compact column through feed legs H and l0 to the seal zones I9 and 2i! and thence into the convertor H. The gravity feed legs `are long enough to create a head of contact material at their lower ends greater than the pressure differential between the convertor and the supply hopper |0. Steam or flue gas or some other suitable seal gas is admitted into the seal zones so as to maintain an inert gaseous blanket adjacent the lower ends of the feed legs. A portion of the contact material passes through orifices onto cones 32 and 33 then downwardly as a shower onto the surface of column lii. If a liquid charge is being employed it may be sprayed from nozzles 3-'1 an 35 into the shower of contact material. Gasiform charge enters via conduit 4|. The remainder of the contact material ows as compact streams through pipes 2 and 28 onto the surface of column Ei and thereby maintain constant the column surface level. In other arrangements such as that shown in Figure 2, the entire contact material feed may be conducted from hopper lil to column as a compact stream or streams. The fluid reactant is converted` to gasiform products which are collected by collectors and withdrawn from the vessel via conduit 54. Used Contact material passes as a compact stream or streams from vessel H to vessel i2, and then passes through vessel |2 as a compact column of gravitating granules. An inert purge gas is supplied into the pipes t0 and 50 to strip gasiform hydrocarbons from the contact material and to prevent flow of reactant gas between vessels and I2. The purge steam may be withdrawn via conduit 164 along with the gasiform products. A suitable reconditioning gas enters the Vessel I2 via conduit 9|, header 8i? and pipes 82 and then flows in part up through the column '|9 to outlet |00 and in part down through column |9 to outlet 88. The reconditioning gas may be merely a heating or cooling gas in. the case of pyrolytic tact material flows by gravity as compact streams into the feed tank I3 wherein it is delivered onto the surface of the substantially compact bed |02. The tank i3 is Vented at |0| so that the surface of the bed |02 is substantially at atmospheric pressure. Steam is admitted from conduit H8 through valve ||1 and conduit |01 into the header |05 and thence it passes through the perforations |08 into the annular type passage 220 leading up to the 'bottom of the lift pipe lll. The steam may be at a relatively low pressure, near atmospheric since it is sucked up through pipe |4 into the hopper I0 which is maintained under a substantial vacuum. A feeder stream of steam passes from the tree-way valve ||T| to pipes H2 and H3 and enters the bed from under distributor ||0 and or both and then passes transversely through the bed into the passage |00. This induces or pushes the contact material into the rst gas stream which enters the lift pipe without flowing through the bed. This rst gas stream imparts to the contact material additional energy required to raise it to a suitable lift Velocity. It has kbeen found that the rate of contact material iiow from the bed |02 into the lift pipe I4 can be controlled partly or entirely by regulating the rate of flow of the feeder stream. This feeder stream should be introduced preferably at a point or points where it will be forced to flow transversely across the bed in the feed tank in a roughly horizontal direction before it reaches the lift pipe. However, it is contemplated within the broader scope of this invention that the secondary stream may be introduced above the bed surface as Via pipe 2|5 in Figure 5 and then caused to flow down through the bed and into the lift pipe. This latter alternative represents a less preferred form of the invention and when this type of operation is employed the pressure in the feed tank may be above atmospheric by the amount required to force the secondary stream down through the bed in the lift feed tank. Also, in less preferred forms of the invention, the feeder stream of gas may be supplied into the bed at a point or points spaced somewhat below the level of the lower end of the gas lift pipe, but in employing this latter method care should be taken to avoid boiling or substantial nuidization of the bed in the left feed zone. It is preferred to introduce the feeder stream of gas at a location which is not substantially below the level of the lower end of the lift pipe. In any event, the secondary stream should pass through at least a substantial thickness of the compact bed in the feed tank before reaching the lower end of the gas lift pipe. It has also been found to be important to limit the gas and contact material ow on entering the lift pipe to a velocity which is not greatly in excess of that reached by the gas and contact material respectively in the lift pipe thereabove. Thus, it is desirable that the area provided by the perforations |08 be not substantially less than the horizontal cross-sectional area of the lift pipe at a level above its fiared lower end. Also, the horizontal cross-sectional area of the annular passage |6 should likewise he of the same order of magnitude as that of the lift pipe above its flared lower end.

A modified form of lift feed tank is shown in Figure 6. In this figure, the lift pipe I4 is not shown to be flared on its lower end and the first gas stream is supplied into tank I3 via conduit |00 which is in line with pipe M but which terminates a short distance therebelow so as to provide a vertical gap between pipes |4 and |90 into which'` contact"` materialfisf inducedcrpushed by means of.:` the feeder'strearn'of steam frompipe teil. It5has1been foundlthat when the'vertical gap' betweenfthe'ends of pipes |"4` and ISU is sunciently short the gas flowing up from pipe tzprevents thel formation of any substantial compact bed in the'gap sothat the gas 4from'V introduced' directly into the lift pipe at-a loca-Y tion above its lower end and the method of Figure dfwhere the first stream of gas is introduced into the feed zone at a point below `and separated from the lower end ofthe lift pipe by-'a' short gap as described hereinabove. The proper sizeof the gap-depends upon the size of thepipes l'and I'B'i. As an example, where the pipes |4-and ISG were 10- and 7 inch diameterl pipes, .a vertical gap of'from 2 Ato 10 inches was found to provide satisfactory operation. n vorder to insure that the linearvelocity of the gasffrompipe |96 is not substantially greater-than the mixed gas velocity in. pipe i4; it is preferred to employ instead of the arrangement shown in Figure 6, thearrange- Inentof Vligure l` modified to the extent of lowering the level of the conical head iii relative to the lower end of pipe |43 so that all or a portion of`=the perfo-rated area of the head IRM is below thelevel of the iiared lower end of lift pipe le.

Turning again to Figure'l, the Contact material is lifted through pipe i4 into the hopper l0 wherein it settles due to the lower gas velocity therein.y The separated steam passes'via conduit I5 to thel barometric condenser |30 wherein it is condensed by Contact with water, thereby drawing the vacuum on vhopper I0. The water' vand condensed steam leave the condenser |3ll Via 'barometric leg IM. Since an atmosphere of steam is maintained within the lower section of the feed tank, very little non-condensed gas entersthe lift gas stream, but any non-condensible'gas which is sucked into the system may be withdrawn from the barometric condenser by a small compressor or an ejector 33. The vacuurn ymaintained,within the hopper ill shouldbe great enough toV accomplish the lifting of contact rmaterial through-pipe ifi and to overcome the pressure drop throughpipe lei. In general, thepressure drop across pipe i@ may be of the orderof Stc 12 poundsper squarev inch Vdepending upon the rate of contact material flow, its densityv in the liftA pipe, the length ofthe lift pipe, andthe rate of gas fiow. In order toA provide proper control of` thelift operation, the vacuum in chamber lljshould be'maintained-cons'tant; A convenientmethod for accomplishing thisis to introduce a small amount of noncondensible gas via-pipe ici) into. thebarometric condenser. rihe rate of gas flow in ,pipelli is controlled by valve Isl and pressure control intrurnent |42 tolmaintain constant the vacuum in'hopper lil.

The contact material level ismaintained con.- stant in separator IG.; by permitting. l.a smallpox'- ticn ofthe circulation to overflow into funnel 2st from which itipasses via pipes2ii| A,and ilinto the top'oi an accumulator'E. The contactvrnaterialA maintains itselfl within a relatively [narrow range-of levels within-the lower portionof the acc-umulatorzand these levels are measured by level indicator 36|; A small amount of contact material attrition results 'from the continuous circulationltogzthe'cyclic system. Fine material maycbe vremoved from the system by passing a portion-:ofthe contact'material'via pipes 26| and 335 `into^`anafelutriatori'2El2` wherein it is :scrubbed clean .ofines by-'an yupwardly moving gas stream. Thefgasfcontainingnes'is passed to separator 2&3 wherein' the .'iines are separated. The scrubbed granular*- material .settles intothe accumulatorfll from'rwliich it flows'via pipe 265 to# thel Alift feed` tank: |132 in verder zto` avoid; vexcessive i fluctuations in the operation ofthe:v barometric condenser and also in'A ord'erto'. insure f'proper: separation of contact material vand gasr irrhopper*A Iii, itisy desirable'to nraintain-aconstantthetotal'i'atefof :gas ow in pipe. ttf/irrespective vofstherateof contact'material.. circulation. Also, it Ahas been. found desirable'to"l maintain' the.v linearfgas velocity in the iiit'zpipe 'within .a vrelatively narrow optimum rate'range'in orderto 'accomplishthe contact material f transfer with i aV minimum ofy attrition loss. Itlias been found .that'this can be accomplished: by controlling the'total rate of steam fiow vsubstantially constant through control -valve |119; The` ratel of contact material flow into the lift'pipe' is controlled'by adjusting the rate ofggas'fiowvv in pipes` l 2 orl i3 or both, which are fed from pipe i les. Anyadjustment'in the rate ofgas fiow` throughfpipe i' i 6' is compensated for by a substantially equal and opposite adjustmentrin the rate Aof flow'through pipe |01. This canLbe accomplished by means of the 'three-way valvef. lil or'by 'other-suitable means. While the preferred form of this invention involves the use of a suctiontype lift`to transfer contact'material from withinv the'bed` in` the feed tank to the supply'hopper; it? is to be'un'derstood'that the specificrmethodof accomplishing contact material' introduction into thegas lift-*stream `and for controlling its rate of 'flowwhich is described hereinabovev is` not consideradas limitedr to suction-typelifts vbutmay be employed where vthe supplyfhcpperiis-maintained at'a pressure near atmosphericlwhile `the lift gasi is suppliedA tothe lower iend' of the lift` under' sufficient pressureV to accomplishthecontact material transfer. 'The 'G application of'suetion type lifts in systems of thetype'herein involved is'the-subject of claims in'co-pending'application Serial rNumber 75,642, iiledinv the UnitedStates PatentA Oiiice on February 1,0, 1949.

'lnzcordingto4 the preferrediform ofthis invention', the convertori is positioneda short distance above the-'reconditioner and the reconditioner is positionedznear'ground'level, while the relatively small 4supply hopperispositioned a substantial distance above the-convertor. This permits'all ofy the 4large vessels to be located near ground level with a consequent saving yin structural steelcost.V It'is desirableto maintain the pressure :inf the` recondition'er :not substantially above that' inthe convertor so that very little contact material leg 'height is'required to effect Vgravity ow betweenthe'vessels. This may be accomplished by 'meanso'f vthe diagram operated valve ideen stackv 89 and differential pressure controller iiBI. It willbe noted that silice the tank i3 ismaintainedfnear atmospheric pressure, the pipes 92 and'SS'mayfalso Abe relatively -short'in length "so-'that essentially all `of the gravityfee'd leghci'ght vinthe system is localized-in the legs 11 uninterrupted compact stream of contact material extends down from hopper Iii through legs il and i8 and pipes 2l' and 28 vto the column 40 in the convertor and from the column 4I) through pipes e9 and Sil to the column 'IS in the reconditioner and then from the reconditioner through pipes 32 and 93 onto the compact bed Iii? in the feed tank I3. The rate of solid flow down through this entire system is subject to adjustment solely by the rate of contact material entry from within bed I02 into the lift pipe ill and this in turn is controlled by regulation of the rate of gas flow from distributors III) or III across the bed IGZ. It should be understood, however, that the particular method described herein for controlling the rate of contact material introduction into the gas lift while maintaining substantially constant the total gas velocity in the lift pipe is not to be construed as limited in its application to the particular arrangement for the relative positioning of the convertor and reconditioner described hereinabove. In some arrangements, the vessels may be positioned side by side and two separate gas lifts may be employed. Also, while it is preferred to employ steam as the lift gas, it is anticipated that other suitable condensible gases may be substituted therefore. In some operations, the gas supplied to the feed tank and sucked into the lift pipe may be a non-condensible gas in which event the barometric condenser may be replaced by a vacuum pump or other suitable apparatus for evacuating the separator I0.

As an example of the operation of the method and apparatus of this invention, its application to a catalytic cracking process using 4-20 mesh (Tyler) bead form synthetic silica alumina catalyst may be considered. In a typical operation the supply hopper I is positioned 185 feet above ground level and is maintained under a vacuum of about 7 pounds per square inch. This vacuum is maintained substantially constant by adjustment of the operation of the barometric condenser I30. Air or flue gas may be introduced via pipe I 40 into the condenser for this purpose. Catalyst at about 1100 F. passes down through pipes I'I and I8 to the reactor wherein it contacts a reduced crude petroleum charge supplied via pipes 35 and 31. Vaporized gas oil charge is supplied via conduit 4I. The upper section of the reactor is maintained under a pressure of about l0 pounds per square inch while the steam pressure in hopners I9 and 20 is maintained about a half pound higher. The vertical distance between the bottom of hopper It and seal hoppers I9 and 20 is about 90 feet. The legs 2l and 22 are only a few feet long. Spent catalyst passes from the convertor to the kiln via legs IIS and 50 which are only about 6 feet long. The convertor outlet pressure is about 7 pounds per sduare inch gauge and the pressure in stack B9 may be maintained at about 6 pounds gauge. If desired, thestack pressure may be permitted to drop to substantially atmospheric but should not be permitted to rise substantially above that in the convertor because this would reduire an increase in the length of gravitv flow legs i9 and 50 and consecuentlv an undesirable increase in the overall height of the entire unit. Catalyst is regenerated in the kiln bv contaminant burning and the catalyst temperature is controlled below about l200 F. bv the single set of cooling tubes 95.

of catalyst by weight per part of oil charge to The catalyst rate of cir' culation is maintained at about 2.5 -to 4.5 partsv the reactor and the total oil charge space velocity is of the order of 1.0 to 2.0 volumes of oil per hour measured at 60 F. per volume of catalyst in the reactor. Under these conditions the catalyst may be regenerated without its temperature rising to a heat damaging level by employing cooling tubes at only one or two stages in the lower section of the regeneration kiln. Regenerated catalyst passes as a compact stream from the kiln to lift feed tank I3, the distance between the bottom of the kiln and the top of the lift tank being only about 6 feet. When a suction lift is provided, the pressure within the upper part of tank I3 is substantially atmospheric and that in the lower section of the tank near the entrance to the lift pipe may be controlled anywhere within a range of several pounds vacuum to one or two pounds gauge pressure. The bed depth above the lower end of the lift pipe should be of the order of about 3-8 feet. The level of gas inlets II2 and H3 to feed tank I3 should be preferably within one to two feet of the level of the flared lower end of the lift pipe I4, although the secondary gas may be supplied entirely at a point above the bed in the feed tank in less preferred arrangements. Steam is admitted to the lift tank I3 from conduits 01 and H6, the ratio of feeder steam to that introduced directly into the lift pipe being controlled to maintain the catalyst circulation at the desired rate. For a circulation of about 60 tons per hour in which catalyst is lifted about feet a ten inch diameter lift pipe is adequate and the low pressure Waste steam required for the lifting totals about 40 to 50 pounds per minute for a granular catalyst having a packed density of about 45 pounds per cubic foot. It will be noted that by the method of this invention the first stream of lift gas is supplied to the lift pipe without having passed through any substantial depth of contact material bed. The linear velocity of this gas stream as it enters the lower end of the lift pipe should be not greatly in excess of the mixed gas stream velocity in the lift pipe thereabove. In general, the linear velocity of the rst gas stream should fall at least within the range 0.5 to 2.0 of the maximum linear velocity of the mixed gas stream in the lift pipe above the flared lower end thereof. The gas and catalyst velocity in the annular passage |96 of Figure 4 or as it flows around the lower end of pipe III in Figure 6 should not be substantially greater than it is in the lift pipe shortly above the flared lower end thereof. Thus, the extremely high gas velocity encountered in the feed region of the prior art jet-fed lifts is avoided by the method of this invention. Moreover, since the first gas stream enters directly into the lift pipe without having passed through any substantial portion of the contact material bed, the contact material stream turbulence and high flow velocity encountered in gas lift systems heretofore employed is avoided. In many operations this first gas stream may constitute the major portion of the total gas supplied to the lift pipe.

In general, the proper gas velocity to be maintained within the lift pipe varies depending on the particular gas and contact material involved, the pressure and temperature in the lift pipe, and the length of the lift. In general, the linear velocity of the gas flow up through the lift pipe should be within the range about 3 to 60 feet per second and preferably l0 to 40 feet per second @99W @he terminal velocity of the contact materi'al particles. As an'example, infa suction type lift in which air at about 900 F. is the lift gas, andin which the contactrmaterial was a spherical bead form synthetic silica-alumina catalyst ofabout 4' to .20 mesh Tyler sizeand 45 pounds per cubic foot packed density, the lineargas velocity in thelift pipe should be within the range about 85to lfeet per secondpand preferably 90 to ldfeet per second while the catalyst lineear velocity is within the range about l to 50 feet per second and preferably Within the range 1.0 to 20 feet per second, and the lift pressure was 7;'2 yand 14.7 pounds per square inch absolute at its upper and lower ends respectively. Under the above conditions, a lift-pipe having-an internal diameter-.of about 14 inches andra height of 118D feet can satisfactorily handle about 95 tons perhcur of contact material. The relative amounts of feeder gas and of lift gas supplied directly into the lift pipe will vary depending upon the rate of contact material transfer and the size of the gap between the first stream inlet and the lower end of the lift pipe. In general, the feederstream may amount to from about to 90 percent and preferably7 from 10 to 65 percent of ythe total gas supplied to the lift pipe. The rate of feeder gas'flow-should in all cases be below that which would cause dusting or boiling of the Contact material bed. For reasons discussed hereinabove, it is preferable to set the total gas rate at a constant value and tovcompensateany-changein the rate of ilow of the feeder gas stream by an equal and opposite change in the other stream entering from conduit E-Elvdirectly into the lift pipe. It is also contemplatedwithin the broader scope of this invention that the rateof catalyst entry t-o the lift pipe may be controlled by adjusting the rate of flow of gasfsupplied via pipes H2 or H3 or bothpwhile the stream entering viav pipe lill is simultaneousl7,7 adjusted if necessary to maintainthecatalyst density in the lift pipe within therange about 3 to 24 pounds per cubic foot and preferably within the range 4 tor if) pounds per cubic foot on the basis of a catalyst having a normal pacizedfdensity of about 45 pounds per cubic foot. y

It should be understood that the particular detailsof apparatus design and operation con-v ditions and the particular examples of the application' of this invention given hereinabove are intended as illustrative and are not to be construed asflirniting thescope of this-invention eX- cept as it is limited by the following claims.

I claim:

l, In `a continuous process for conversion of hydrocarbons wherein a granular contact inaterial is passed cyclically through two contacting zones, one being a confined conversion sone in which it contacts a-uid hydrocarbon to eifelct conversion thereof to gasiforn'r products, and the other contacting zone' being a confinedreconm ditioning zone in which the contact materialis subjected to Va suitable'reconditioning to recondition it for reuse in said conversion Zone the improved method of transferring the Contact ina.- terial from one of said contacting zones to the other which comprises, passing the-contact material downwardly from one of said contacting zones onto a substantially compact bed of said contact materialmaintained therebelow in a con- Ylined zone, maintainingia-conned lift passage extending` upwardly from an intermediate locationin said bed to a location above-the other contactingv zone, said-passage bemg A1n communicationfon tsldownwardlyfacing loweren'd with' said bedysupplyinga first streamof lift gas intov said'- confinedlzone sothat vit mayl enter the lower end of saidlift passage without having passed the gas through any substantial. portion of the substantially compactbed, introducing a second streamoflift gas intosaid bed a spaced distance away fromthelower endiof said lift passage and flowinglitlthroughthe intervening portion of said bed into Athe'lowerendof said lift passage, thereby inducing contact material from within said bed to flow into said rst stream, lifting the contact material suspended in the mixed gas streams upwardly-through/said lift passage to said location above saidl other contacting zone and flowingit-from said location to said other contacting zone and controlling therate of contact material entry into-said lift passage by controlling the rate of'introduction into said bed of said second stream of lift gas,` the rate ofintroductionV of said second streambeing changed without an accompanying change in the rate offsupply of said nrst streaminthe--same directionwhenever it is desiredto changefthe rate ofcontact material entry intosaid/lift passage.

2. An improved method for feeding granular solid material into an upwardly extending lift passage through which it is lifted by a lift gas to anelevated receiving zone which method cornprises, maintaining a substantially compact bed of said solid'material surrounding the lower end of said lift passage and in communication with the interior of .said passage along the downwardly facing lower eno'. of said lift passage, supplying the Contact material continuously onto the surface ofv saidbed, supplying arst stream of lift gas tothe lower endfof said lift passage Without causing said gas to flow through any substantial thickness of said bed, introducing a second stream of lift Agas into said bed at at least one point spaced a-substantial distance away from the'lower end of said passage and passing said gas through theintervening portion of said bed and-theninto the-lower end of said lift passage at a ratesuilcient to push the solid material into said first stream of gas, whereby it becomes suspendedr in the'stream of mixed gas in said lift passage and controlling the rate of solid material.

entryfrom said-compact bed into said passage by adjusting the rate of introductionl of said second stream of gas, while effecting a compensating substantially equal and opposite adjustment in the rateof Asupplyrof said nrst gas stream. so as tomaintain the total gas iiow in said lift passage substantially constant, and maintaining the linear velocities of-'said nrst and second streams of lift gas as they venter the lift passage not greatly in eXcess'of` the linear velocity of the mixed gases thereabove in the lift passage.

3. In a cyclicprocess for the conversion of hydrocarbonsrinithe presence of a moving granular solid material wherein-the solid material passed cyclically through two contacting zones, one. beinga conversion zone wherein it is contactedivvith .iluidhydrocarbons undergoing reaction and the. otherY being a reconditioning zone wherein it is contacted `with a suitable reconditioninggas to recondition it for reuse in said conversion zone, the improved method of transferring the contact material from one of said zones to the'other` which comprises, passing solid materialsfrom one ofsaid contacting zones onto asubstantiallyt compact bed of solid material in-.a lift-feeding zone, supplying a nrst stream of lift gas fromoutside. said feeding. zone substantially'rlirectlyptoa,mixingrregion within said bedv substantially below its surface, passing a control stream of gas through a portion of said bed towards said mixing region and then permitting the control stream to enter and mix with said rst gas stream so as to induce solid material from within said bed to enter said mixing region and become suspended in the mixed gas, passing the mixed gas and contact material upwardly as a confined lift stream to a separation zone located above the other of said contacting zones, maintaining the total amount of gas admitted into said lift gas stream at a suitable substantially constant rate suitable for lifting the contact material from said feeding zone to said separation zone, effecting control of the rate of solid material entry into said lift gas stream by adjustment in the rate of flow of said control gas stream, while maintaining constant the total rate of gas flow in said lift gas stream by compensating any adjustment in said control gas stream by an equal and opposite adjustment in the rate of gas admission of said first named stream of gas to the lower end of said gas lift stream, effecting separation of contact material from the lift gas in said separation zone and passing the separated contact material to the other of said contacting zones.

e. In a cyclic process for the conversion of hydrocarbons in the presence of a moving granular solid material wherein the solid material is passed cycli-cally through two contacting zones, one being a conversion zone wherein it is contacted with fluid hydrocarbons undergoing reaction and the other being a reconditioning Zone wherein it is contacted with a suitable reconditioning gas to recondition it for reuse in said conversion zone, the improved method of effecting the circulation of said solid material which comprises: passing solid material from one of said contacting zones onto a substantially compact bed of said solid material in a lift feeding zone, maintaining a confined lift passage extending upwardly from a location in said bed substantially below its surface and above its bottom to a solid-gas separation zone located above the other of said contacting Zones, said lift passage having its downwardly facing lower end within said bed at least partially open to allow communication between said bed and said lift passage, introducing a first stream of gas from outside said lift feeding Zone into the lower end of said passage without causing said gas to pass through any substantial portion of the bed, introducing second stream of lift gas into said bed a spaced distance from the lower end of said passage and flowing the gas through the bed and then into the lower end of said passage so as to induce solid material to move into said rst stream of gas and become lifted by the mixed gas streams upwardly through said passage and into said separation Zone, effecting separation of solid material from the gas in said separation zone, exhausting the gas from said separation Zone so as to maintain it under a substantial vacuum sufficient to suoli the gas and solid material up through said confined passage, flowing the separated solid material downwardly to the other of said contacting rsones, regulating the rate of solid material transfer from said feeding Zone to said separation zone by adjusting the rate of introduction of said second gas stream into said bed, and maintaining the total rate of gas now in said confined passage substantially constant by compensating for any rate adjustment in said second gas stream by an positioned below the opposite and substanow in the tially equal rate adjustment in said first gas stream.

5. In a system for the continuous conversion i' hydrocarbons in the presence of a cyclically moving granular contact material having two contacting vessels positioned one above the other, each of said vessels having separate gas inlets and gas outlets spaced apart from the inlets and having solid material inlets at their upper ends and solid material outlets at their lower ends, an unobstructed, vertical conduit for solid flow connecting the solid outlet on the upper vessel to the solid inlet on the lower vessel, the improved system for transfer of contact material from the lower contacting vessel back to the upper contacting vessel comprising 'a separation vessel positioned a substantial distance above the upper contacting vessel, a vertical feed conduit connecting the lower section of the separation vessel with the solid material inlet on the upper contacting vessel, a gas outlet conduit connected into the separation vessel near its upper end, a receptacle adapted to confine a bed of contact material lower contacting vessel, members defining an unobstructed, downwardly extending passage for solid material flow from the bottom of the lower contacting vessel into the upper section of said receptacle, a lift conduit extending upwardly from a location within the lower section of but above the bottom of said receptacle to a location within said separation vessel intermediate the top and bottom thereof, said conduit being open on its upper end and being at least partially open on its lower end, an inlet for gas connecting into said receptacle directly below the lower end of said lift conduit, an externally located gas supply conduit, a threeway valve on said supply conduit, conduit means connecting said gas inlet to said valve, at least one gas inlet pipe connecting into the side of said receptacle at a level near that of the lower end of said lift conduit, conduit means connecting said last named gas inlet to said three-way valve, and a constant flow control device on said supply conduit upstream of said three-way valve.

5. An improved apparatus for pneumatic transfer of granular contact material comprising, a feed chamber adapted to confine a bed of contact material, conduit means to supply contact material into the upper section of said feed chamber, a receiving chamber positioned at a higher level than said feed chamber, a lift pipe extending u wardly to said receiving chamber from a location in said feed chamber below conduit means for contact material supply but above the bottom of said feed chamber, said lift pipe having an outwardly flared, downwardly facing, open lower end, a gas inlet conduit connecting into said feed chamber and terminating directly oe-- low said flared open end of said lift pipe, a perforated, upright tapered distributor head on the end of said inlet conduit, said head having a perforated area for gas flow which is not substantially less than the horizontal cross-sectional area of said. lift pipe above the level of its dared lower end, and a second gas inlet connecting into said feed chamber' at a location spaceed a substantial distance away from the lower end of said lift pipe and positioned not substantially below the level thereof, at least one now control device associated with the first and second. named gas inlet conduits adapted to permit adjustment on the flow in one of said conduits and to automatically cause a change in the adjustment on other of said conduits which is oppoacccpeii site-fte: any adjustment' made lonv vthe new: in thetiifs'tcondii-it.l n a inV azcontinuous `process for conversionV of hydrocarbons- "wherein` a "granular -materlal 1s passed-'downwardly through -two contactingzones:

arranged' 'in vertical series', inV which zones the contact-'material owsas fa `substantially compact:

column .andrb'etwee'nzwhich Zones-fit fiowsfi'a's ay coniinedri unobstructed vcompact stream` of. relatively small cross-sectional area, one oisaid contacting zones being' a` reactionV zone; .inwhich lthe contact'lm'ate'rial is contacted with .a fiui'd; hydro-'- carbonlreactant to `eiect conversion .thereofandi the.- otherl of 'said zones being `af reconditioning zone `fin-.which the. "contact material is contacted with' a rsuitable' reconditioning; gas'. to :reconditi'on it fior freusel in :said Vconversion zone; 'and whereinv 'thec'ontactf material flows. from the uppermost zone to the"lowermostccrre: as a confined, compact; unthrottled stream 'for relatively small "crosssectional area; the improved methodf'fo-r effecting cyclic circulation ci" the contact: material throughI said contacting vzones comprising,` passing-the contact material 'from the lower-of 'said 1 contacting zones tof-a substantially compact un obstructed stream onto the surface of ia `substan-v tially compact :bed yoi' said 'Contact material ina lii`t=lfeeding vzone therebelow, saidstreamf being fre'evcf `flow restriction :except forl the throttling eftect ofsaid bed; 'introducing a ii'rst stream of liftgasfinto said "lift feeding zone and passing it upwardly. through at l'easta portion o'f said i bed. and" on upwardly t'o1afseparati`on VZone loe tionq'withf said confinedrliftstream tofzrise into said lift stream, lifting* the contact material* which enters-said lit stream lfronrsaid bed l'up-r wardly finto said separation' zone-donated above the: uppermost contacting: zone; v'eiectirifg separa'- tifon' voi contact mater-iai from carryingfga'sin said separation zone; withdrawing separated-gas from th'e'upper s'ectionfof said 'separationzone, passing contactf material downwardly from the lowerf section :of said separationrzoneras"asubstantially compact; verticaif'stream into the uppermost icontacting zone; saidicompact stream' b'eing oi'suiii= cientvertical length to insure gravity flowof con tactmaterial to saidfupperm'ost vcontacting vzone against ritira-pressure "therein, and controllingthe rateixof, contact material -iifowfdo'wnir'om saidl separation zone4 to' and'through said contacting` zones andato ,sa'rdf bed in said feeding zone by adgustm'ent'oi the rate. of supply of said 'separate contrclstreain of 'gas into said bed 'in said lift feeding-zone, the. rate 'of 'contact material 'circulation being-'changedwhendesired by a change in thefzratc of supply o'saidzseparate control stream of :gas: accompanied :with: an opposite: change in therrate. oi'.- 'ntroductiorr oii :'sai1i Iiirst. mentioned andncQQIldi etant.;

so thatztheftctal rateeof the-:firstv sstreamsremainfsubstantiallyiccne rof- 8f. An improved-method .forztransferring granu lar" contact material from 'one elevationl to a; higher elevation which comprises,r maintaining* a substantially'compact bed of said contact ma-y terial ina feeding zonerat they lower elevation,v

baffling the lower portion-of said bed toprovidel av gas: space communicatingon its bottom withsaidfbed, supplying a'firststream ofv steam intov thefrlower section :of said bed'near said gas space andcausing it to ow through YanV intervening;4

portion of'sai'd compact bed to said gas space toy cause the Contact material to rise upwardly' from within said bed into' said gas space, introducing second stream of steam into said gasw space at a'level aboveits bottom to mixwithk therising-contact material, sucking the mixed" steam and cor-itactA material upwardly fromsaidf gas spaceas a confined stream into a settling zone positioned at the higher elevation; effecting:

separation of the steam and 'contact material in.:

said-settling zone, lsucking the steam from the'y upper section of said settling zone into a barometric condensing lzone wherein it is mixed with'v water to` effectl its condensation, controlling the rate of steam. suction from said separatingxzonel t0maintain-it under suiiicient vacuumv to lift` thee-contact material from said'bed'in said feed;V

ingf zone to, said settlingzone, oontrollingthfef rate; of contact vmaterial `transfer fromsaid feeding zone-to said settling zonexby;regulating 'the rate of lsupply of said'rst 'named stream oit'Y steamin-to -the lowerfsection of said bed-in saidI li-ftffeedingzone', anychange inthe' rate oi suppl-y of said-iirststream o'fsteamy being accom panied by an oppositeclfiangey in the rate of introductionoi said; second 'stream of steam intol said., gas spaceasand replenishing saidibedfasfree quired. with contact =-materi`al.

9c In aI-cyclic-proc'ess for-the conversion of` hydrocarbcnswherein a granularzcontact matenrial is passed'downwardly in series ras a" sub-- stantially compact mass through two' contacting zones, onenof said contacting vzones being areactionv zone in whichth'e contactm'aterial is: contacted withv the hydrocarbon reactant and the other-zonebeing `a:reconditioni'rig acne in which thefcontact material. iscontacted'with ar recon'- -v ditioning gas, andfwherein thez'contact'material' owsdownwardly from-the uppermost zonef to the -lower contacting; yzone.y as a substantialyv come pact,v confined; unobstructed' stream; the im'- proved-method fortransferring the'contact material from the lower contacting zone 'back tothe upper contacting; zone which comprises,V vpassing the contactmaterial :from the lower of said contacting zones as a substantially compact" uncbstructedwstream onto the surfaceLof ia substantially compact @bed ofY said; contact" material in.Y a .f lift feed Zone therebelows, maintaining a `conti-ned li-f-t passage extending `upwardly from a location within'said compact bed intermediate itsends toalocation 'above the upper contacting,v zone, saidpassage communicating at its downwardly facing lower end withisaid bed, sup'- Yply-ing 'a iirststream of lift gas to` the lower'end offfsaid lift passageawithout causing it to flow` through-afsubstantial thickness of said compact bedgvintroducing a feederstreani of gas into said bedfaspaced'distance awayfrom the lower end of -saidlift passage `and owing it throughthe intervening'portion'of said compact bed intothe www1-enti :or said Vlift i passage, thereby Vinducing contact material*V fromL within said bed tc 'new intoisaidrst stream, liftingffthecontact mate-4 rialisuspended 'the mixed rst lift" gas streamand feeder gas stream upwardly through said lift passage to said location above the upper contacting zone and gravitating the contact material downwardly from said location onto the column in said upper contacting Zone, maintaining the linear velocity of the rst gas stream as it enters said passage within about 0.5 to 2.0 of the maximum mixed gas velocity along said passage and controlling the rate of contact material entry into said lift passage by adjusting the rate of introduction into said bed of said feeder stream of lift gas, the rate of introduction of said feeder stream of lift gas being changed without any substantial change in the same direction of the rate of supply of said rst stream of lift gas when a change in the rate of contact material entry into said lift passage is desired.

10. An improved method for feeding granular solid material into an upwardly extending lift passage through which it is lifted by a lift gas to an elevated receiving zone which method comprises, maintaining a substantially compact bed of said solid material surrounding the lower end of said lift passage and in communication with the interior of said passage alongr the downwardly facing lower end of said lift passage, supplying the contact material continuously onto the surface of said bed, supplying a first stream of lift gas substantially directly to the lower end of said lift passage, passing a second stream of gas transversely across said bed and then into said passage whereby solid material is caused to enter said first stream and to be lifted by the mixed gas streams up into said supply zone, separating gas from the solid material in said supply zone and withdrawing the separated gas from the upper section of said supply zone, controlling the rate of solid material entry into said lift passage by controlling the rate of ow of said second gas stream, desired changes in the rate of said contact material flow being effected by change in the rate of ow of said second gas stream without corresponding change in the same direction in the rate of said rst stream of gas, and maintaining the density of contact material in said confined lift passage within the range 3 to 24 pounds per cubic foot by control of the total rate of supply of both gas streams.

11. An improved apparatus for pneumatic transfer of granular contact material comprising a receptacle adapted for confining a bed of contact material, a separation vessel positioned at a higher level than said receptacle, a gas outlet from the upper section of said separation vessel and a solid material outlet from the lower section of said vessel, a lift conduit extending upwardly from a location within the lower section of but above the bottom of said receptacle to a location within said separation vessel intermediate the top and bottom thereof, said conduit being open on its upper end and having a flared open lower end, a cylindrical gas inlet member attached to the bottom of said receptacle and extending upwardly to a level near the flared lower end of said lift conduit, a conical shaped roof on said inlet member extending upwardly within said flared lower end of said lift conduit, said conical roof being of less lateral dimension than said :dared lower end of the lift conduit so as to leave an annular passage for gas and contact material entry between the conical roof and said flared lower end of said lift conduit, openingsin said conical roof to permit gas flow from within the inlet member into said gas lift conduit, an externally located gas supply conduit, a

constant flow control device on said conduit, a three-way valve on said conduit down stream from said ow control device, a pipe connected between said three-way valve and said cylindrical inlet member, a gas distributing member extending around the inner side wall of said receptacle at a level intermediate its ends, a pipe connected between said distributing member and said threeway valve and a flow control valve on said last named pipe.

12. In a system for conversion of hydrocarbons in the presence of a vmoving granular contact material, wherein there is provided two contacting vessels positioned one above the other connected by an unobstructed vertical conduit for solid flow, the improved apparatus for transferring the contact material from the lower to the upper contacting vessel which comprises, a separation vessel positioned a substantial distance above the upper contacting vessel, a vertical feed conduit connecting the lower section of the separation vessel with the solid material inlet on the upper contacting vessel, a gas outlet conduit connected into the separation vessel near its upper end, a receptacle adapted to confine a bed of contact material positioned below the lower contacting vessel, members defining an unobstructed, downwardly extending passage for solid material flow from the bottom of the lower contacting vessel into the upper section of said receptacle, a lift conduit extending upwardly from a location within the lower section of but above the bottom of said receptacle to a location within said separation vessel intermediate the top and bottom thereof, said conduit being open on its upper end and being at least partially open on its lower end, passage dening means for gas introduction into the lower end of said lift conduit from a location outside of said receptacle, and conduit means for gas introduction into the lower section of said receptacle at a location spaced apart from the open lower end of said lift conduit, at least one flow control device associated with said passage defining means and conduit means for gas introduction adapted to permit adjustment in the gas flow in said conduit for gas introduction and to automatically provide an adjustment on the flow in said passage defining means which is opposite any adjustment made on the ow in said conduit.

13. In a continuous process -for conversion of hydrocarbons wherein a granular contact material is passed cyclically through two contacting zones, one being a confined conversion zone in which is contacts a fluid hydrocarbon to effect conversion thereof to gasiform products, and the other contacting zone being a confined reconditioning zone in which the contact material is subjected to a suitable reconditioning gas to recondition it for reuse in said conversion zone the facing lower end to said bed at a location under the surface thereof, supplying a first stream of gas to the lower end of said confined passage without its having passed through a substantial portion of said bedin contact with the contact material, introducing a feeder stream of gas into said feeding zone at a location spaced substantially away from the lower end of said passage and by a portion of said compact bed, passing said feeder stream through the intervening portion of said zone without substantial bailing of said compact bed into the lower end of said confined passage so as to cause contact material to enter said coni-ined passage, passing the contact material suspended in the mixed gas streams up through said passage to said supply zone and adjusting the rate of flow of said feeder gas stream to control the rate of transfer of contact material through said confined passage at the desired rate, and avoiding substantial change in the rate of total gas supply by accompanying any adjustment in the rate of said feeder gas by an opposite adjustment in the rate of said first gas stream.

14. An improved method for feeding granular solid material into an upwardly extending lift passage through which it is lifted by a lift gas from a confined feeding zone to an elevated receiving zone which method comprises, maintaining a substantially compact bed of said solid material in said feeding zone surrounding the lower end of said lift passage and in communication with the interior of said passage along the downwardly facing lower end of said lift passage, supplying the contact material continuously onto the surface of said bed, supplying a first stream of lift gas to the lower end of said lift passage without causing said gas to flow through any substantial thickness of said bed introducing a second stream of lift gas into said feeding zone at a location spaced away from the lower end of said lift passage and separated therefrom, at least when the gas flow is stopped by a portion of said compact bed, passing said second stream of gas through the intervening portion of said feeding zone to the lower end of said lift passage, whereby contact material from said bed is forced to enter said lift passage and become suspended in the stream of mixed gas in said lift passage and controlling the rate of solid material entry into said lift passage and the volumetric rate of solid material transfer to said receiving zone by adjustment of the rate of introduction of said second stream of lift gas, the rate of said second stream of lift gas being increased when an increase in solid material transfer is desired and decreased when a decrease in solid material transfer is desired, and accompanying any such adjustment in said second stream by an opposite adjustment on the flow of said rst stream of gas.

15. An improved apparatus for pneumatic transfer of granular contact material comprising, a feed chamber adapted to conne a bed of contact material, conduit means to supply contact material into the upper section of said feed chamber, a receiving chamber positioned at a higher level than said feed chamber, a lift pipe extending upwardly to said receiving chamber from a location within the lower section of but above the bottom of said feed chamber, said lift communicating with the interior of said feed chamber through its downwardly facing open klower end, an inlet for gas connected into said feed chamber and having its delivery end adjacent the lower end of said lift pipe and separate conduit inlet means for gas introduction connected into the lower section of said feed chamber at a location spaced apart from the open lower end of said lift pipe, and at least one ow control device associated with the rst and ysecond named gas inlets to said feed chamber References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 168,029 Korting Sept. 21, 1875 2,331,433 Simpson et al. Oct. 12, 1943 2,438,261 Utterback Mar. 23, 1948 2,440,475 Jacomini Apr. 27, 1948 2,561,771 Ardern July 24, `1951 OTHER REFERENCES Petroleum Refiner, vol. 28, No. 1, pages to 112 (January 1949). 

1. IN A CONTINUOUS PROCESS FOR CONVERSION OF HYDROCARBONS WHEREIN A GRANULAR CONTACT MATERIAL IS PASSED CYCLICALLY THROUGH TWO CONTACTING ZONES, ONE BEING A CONFINED CONVERSION ZONE IN WHICH IT CONTACTS A FLUID HYDROCARBON OF EFFECT CONVERSION THEREOF TO GASIFORM PRODUCTS, AND THE OTHER CONTACTING ZONE BEING A CONFINED RECONDITIONING ZONE IN WHICH THE CONTACT MATERIAL IS SUBJECTED TO A SUITABLE RECONDITIONING GAS TO RECONDITION IT FOR REUSE IN SAID CONVERSION ZONE THE IMPROVED METHOD OF TRANSFERRING THE CONTACT MATIERAL FROM ONE OF SAID CONTACTING ZONE TO THE OTHER WHICH COMPRISES, PASSING THE CONTACT MATERIAL DOWNWARDLY FROM ONE OF SAID CONTACTING ZONES ONTO A SUBSTANTIALLY COMPACT BED OF SAID CONTACT MATERIAL MAINTAINED THEREBELOW IN A CONFINED ZONE, MAINTAINING A CONFINED LIFT PASSAGE EXTENDING UPWARDLY FROM A INTERMEDIATE LOCATION IN SAID BED TO A LOCATION ABOVE THE OTHER CONTACTING ZONE, SAID PASSAGE BEING IN COMMUNICATION ON ITS DOWNWARDLY FACING LOWER END WITH SAID BED, SUPPLYING A FIRST STREAM OF LIFT GAS INTO SAID CONFINED ZONE SO THAT IT MAY ENTER THE LOWER END OF SAID LIFT PASSAGE WITHOUT HAVING PASSED THE GAS THROUGH ANY SUBSTANTIAL PORTION OF THE SUBSTANTIALLY COMPACT BED, INTRODUCING A SECOND STREAM OF LIFT GAS INTO SAID BED A SPACED DISTANCE AWAY FROM THE LOWER END OF SAID LIFT PASSAGE AND FLOWING IT THROUGH THE INTERVENING PORTION OF SAID BED INTO THE LOWER END OF SAID LIFT PASSAGE, THEREBY INDUCING CONTACT MATERIAL FROM WITHIN SAID BED TO FLOW INTO SAID FIRST STREAM, LIFTING THE CONTACT MATERIAL SUSPENDED IN THE MIXED GAS STREAMS UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID LIFT PASSAGE TO SAID LOCATION ABOVE SAID OTHER CONTACTING ZONE AND FLOWING IT FROM SAID LOCATION TO SAID OTHER CONTACTING ZONE AND CONTROLLING THE RATE OF CONTACT MATERIAL ENTRY INTO SAID LIFT PASSAGE BY CONTROLLING THE RATE OF INTRODUCTION INTO SAID BED OF SAID SECOND STREAM OF LIFT GAS, THE RATE OF INTRODUCTION OF SAID SECOND STREAM BEING CHANGED WITHOUT AN ACCOMPANYING CHANGE IN THE RATE OF SUPPLY OF SAID FIRST STREAM IN THE SAME DIRECTION WHENEVER IT IS DESIRED TO CHANGE THE RATE OF CONTACT MATERIAL ENTRY INTO SAID LIFT PASSAGE. 